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The '24' Marathon will bring one viewer a different kind of torture and reward

December 1, 2010 | 10:54
pm

Time may have finally caught up to Jack Bauer and Chloe and CTU and the rest, but there are still those superfans out there who will want to relive every moment of Fox's "24" when the DVDs are released Dec. 14.

Then there are those who want to watch them all. Right now. At one time. In a glass box.

One hundred participants who signed up for The "24" Marathon Fanfest will be put inside of a glass cube measuring 60-by-40 feet at the Hollywood and Highland complex in Hollywood starting Dec. 2, and will compete against one another by watching as many straight hours of the Fox action show as their bodies can handle. Not only will the last viewer left sitting/awake win $10,000 in cash, but they will also get bragging rights as the No. 1 "24" fan in the land. Further, if they can show Jack Bauer-like stamina, they could even become a Guinness World Record holder. Efraïm van Oeveren of the Netherlands currently holds the record for the longest time continuously watching television, at 86 hours.

Brett Hyman, president of Night Vision Entertainment, who are producing the event, said there are definitely some particular rules to follow, many mandated by the Guinness people. First, they have to stay awake the entire time. They do get a 5-minute break for every hour they complete watching, and they can accumulate time (i.e. 4 hours = 20-minute break). The watchers also get three meals a day from the Hard Rock (and 2 snacks) every four hours until midnight.

The attention that the "24" watchers will get may affect the outcome, too. Hyman says there will be 120 people writing in logs and helping out with the participants, plus whoever walks by on one of the busiest corners in the county.

We'll check in on them this weekend to see how they are holding up and if a record can be broken. Maybe the custom video sent in by none other than ﻿Kiefer Sutherland can motivate them to go on. Counting down ...

[UPDATE: There's a meet-and-greet tonight at Hollywood and Highland where the public can also watch the contestants enter the viewing area.]